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Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP)

Tuesday, January 25, 2022

Oakland A's / Seibu Lions Series: Brian Schlitter

 


In 2019, the first reverse journey of being with the Saitama Seibu Lions first, Oakland Athletics second became official when Brian Schlitter ended up playing for both teams. His path and career has a different way of things. 

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Brian Schlitter

Tenures: 2017 with the Seibu Lions, 2019 with the Oakland Athletics

Statistics with Lions: 64 games, (1-5), 63.2 IP, 2.83 ERA, 1.366 WHIP, 3.3 K/9

Statistics with Oakland: Six games, (0-0), 9.2 IP, 3.72 FIP, 1.655 WHIP, 5.6 K/9

Born an raised in the Chicago area, Schlitter was originally drafted in the 34th round out of high school by the Los Angeles Angels in 2005, but didn't. After college, he was taken by the Philadelphia Phillies in 16th round. 

Schlitter made it to High-A ball until he was traded to the Chicago Cubs organization in a waiver deal for Scott Eyre in 2008. He made his MLB debut in 2010 with seven games at the top level. 

With the Cubs undergoing a rebuild through Theo Epstein, Schlitter was part of the inherited players in the organization and he eventually saw significant MLB time in 2014 due to several trades and dumping of players. He saw 61 games with a 4.15 ERA and 2-3 record that year. He regressed in 2015 and fell out of favor leaving the organization after the year ended. 

He spent 2016 in the Colorado Rockies organization, only appearing with the Albuquerque Isotopes in AAA. The Seibu Lions signed him in the fall of 2016 as their first import signing and he even attended fall camp in Miyazaki before 2017 even started. 

The Lions used Schlitter as the sandwich 8th inning setup man as part of a 7-8-9 relief combination of Kazuhisa Makita in the 7th and Tatsushi Masuda in the 9th. He did well with a low ERA under 3.00, but his strikeout ratio was once below 3.0 K/9 at one point. 

By August, the league started to figure him out with his dependence on a fastball and began fouling off many pitches, being a recipe for disaster as a pitch to contact reliever. In one game against the Rakuten Eagles in Sendai, he gave up a four run lead which included a bird/rain delay and it resulted in a tie.

This foreshadowing of collapse in the last two months continued and the Lions called his name one last time in the Climax Series against that same Eagles team. In a one run situation and a winner-take-all Game 3, Schlitter gave up two home runs, including one to a reserve player hitting well-under .250 to put the game out of reach. He only allowed one home run in the regular season and doubled it in less than one postseason inning. 

After spending 2018 with the Los Angeles Dodgers organization in AAA with Oklahoma City, he signed a minor league contract with the A's for 2019. Due to injuries, he was called up and appeared in six MLB games, with five of them in low leverage situations. In his only meaningful outing, he was a 12th inning pitcher in an extra inning game where previous pitcher Blake Treinen already allowed the go-ahead run. 

After not appearing in 2020 due to the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Schlitter saw a handful of minor league games at the AAA level with the A's in Las Vegas for 2021 before they let him go in May. Schlitter will be remembered by A's fans as the pitcher kept for 2020 instead of Kyle Finnegan, who ended up with the Washington Nationals.  

In 2021, Schlitter most played within the Seattle Mariners organization in AAA Tacoma, but never appeared in MLB since 2019.

For 2022, Schlitter signed with the Guerreros de Oaxaca of the LMB Mexican League. In 13 games, he had a 3–2 record with an 8.49 ERA and 6 strikeouts in 11.2 innings. Schlitter was released in June of that season. 

In July of 2022, he signed with the Chicago Dogs from the American Association of Professional Baseball, an independent league and remained with them in a bullpen role through 2023.

In October 2023, Schlitter was drafted 38th overall to the new Baseball United League in the Middle East and South Asia. He will play for the Mumbai Wolves in 2024. 

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Sunday, January 23, 2022

O'Grady speaks on career, versatility leading up to Japan on podcast


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Seibu Lions OF Brian O'Grady was a guest on the Not For Long Media podcast in December. Hosts Justin Ayers and NFL player Colin Thompson interviewed him with various questions.

Here are some notable tidbits on O'Grady:

-He wanted to sign with a team in Japan and even switched agencies with the intention of a team abroad noticing him. Warner Sports management has helped find contracts for several players in Korea and Japan. 

-O'Grady grew up near Philadelphia and couldn't help but compare his initial trade reports to the time Kyle Kendrick was infamously pranked as being "traded" to the Yomiuri Giants for a fictional "Kobayashi Iwamura", not Seiji. (C.C. Lee contract was purchased by the Lions from Cleveland)

-His ability to play several positions happened out of college at Rutgers, where injuries and holes on the roster forced O'Grady to fill spots on occasion, primarily playing first base was the most recent position he mastered.

-Juan Soto and Aaron Judge are among his inspiration for hitters in MLB.

-He always made sure to pick up on knowledge from veteran teammates like Joey Votto, Eric Hosmer and Manny Machado as well many who he saw in the minors. 

-O'Grady nearly signed with a KBO team midseason until the San Diego Padres were forced to promote him from the minors. 

-The Lions contacted O'Grady immediately as he was a priority on the team list of possible import players. He had to make a decision in a short window when offered.

-He expects a deal to happen before any significant cancellations. O'Grady said it will be interesting to track what happens in negotiations between the MLBPA and MLB, but doesn't think it will cause any missed regular games. He admitted there plenty of issues.

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Full interview here.  Thompson also relates to O'Grady as someone who played in the now defunct AAF and suspended XFL. 


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Tuesday, January 18, 2022

Three years later: Progress report on the 2018 Seibu Lions draft class

 


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The 2018 Saitama Seibu Lions draft class is three years in. With plenty of hype around high school projects, the Lions went with the top college arm. Here is a review:

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First round: P Wataru Matsumoto (Nittai University, Tokyo)

The Lions were the only team to take a college player in opening part of the first round for the draft. All 11 other teams had opposition to their picks while the Lions scooped one of the top pitchers available for the short term. After a month in ni-gun, Matsumoto already made some flashes at the ichi-gun with a 7-4 record in 85.1 innings while having a 4.54 ERA. 

Overall, he has developed nicely and projects as a front end starter. He can still be an ace. Grade: B+ 


Hindsight: The Tigers took Koji Chikamoto, Hawks took Hiroshi Kaino, several high school prospects still have intrigue and upside, but the Lions took a safe path here. 

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Second round: P Yutaro Watanabe (Urawa Gakuin HS, Saitama)

Watanabe made his ichi-gun debut in 2021 and showed good promise as a starter. He was thought to be a first round draft pick if the Lions lost out on the rights to Matsumoto. The Lions have to like getting Watanabe to fall as an extra top pick, according to their draft board.  Grade: A- 

Hindsight: None (Lions were drafting at the end of this round)

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Third round: IF Kakeru Yamanobe (Mitsubishi Motors Okazaki, Aichi)

Yamanobe was hoping to continue the trend of a position player being taken in the third round in an even-numbered year as compared to his senpai (Hideto Asamura, Shogo Akiyama, Yuji Kaneko, Shuta Tonosaki, Sosuke Genda). This shakaijin failed to make an early impact in his first professional year with only one base hit in nine games. 

He saw time at 3B and 2B, but could also go at SS if necessary. The Lions were hoping he could be insurance with the loss of Asamura in free agency. With his poor hitting, he's mostly a replacement player. Grade: D

Hindsight: Marines took Kazuya Ojima

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Fourth round: P Kaito Awatsu (Higashi Nihon Kokusai, Fukushima)

Awatsu was a college pitcher who was inspired to pitch in a similar manner to Tetsuya Shiozaki, who is currently working in the Lions front office. He was a regular reliever in ni-gun with a 4.56 ERA in 32 games. Awatsu made his ichi-gun debut in a game I attended against the Yomiuri Giants in garbage time, allowing two runs in two innings. It was his only career ichi-gun action up to this point. 

He was unable to play another ichi-gun game as the Lions brought him back under an ikusei contract. Grade: D


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Fifth Round: C Shoya Makino (Yugakkankoto HS, Ishikawa)

Makino has never played an ichi-gun game and remains a longterm project. With Sena Tsuge taking a role, he could stay buried.  Grade: None

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Sixth Round: P Ryosuke Moriwaki (Sega Sammy, Tokyo)

Moriwaki saw ichi-gun time in the first half of the 2019 as a reliever, but he couldn't hold his position as a 7th inning setup man. In an up and down year, he is most remembered for starting a bean war with the Orix Buffaloes as he hit a few batters. This includes a bases-loaded HBP which drew an Orix coach to make contact with him. 

He was an important 7th inning setup man in 2020, but he couldn't repeat this in 2021. Getting a reliever in the 6th round is still good value

Grade: B

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Seventh round: IF Ryusei Sato (Fuji University, Iwate)

Sato was the only rookie to make the Opening Day roster and was at the ichi-gun for most of the season. He spent his first year on the bench, playing mostly 3B as a defensive replacement, but excelled when given the chance. Sato even had a few timely hits in his young career. 

 It all blew up when he was caught breaking team COVID rules by going golfing with Makoto Aiuchi and speeding as a driver. He lost his place and fell out of favor, prompting a trade with the Fighters which brought back an infielder and pitcher in return. The trade might bring depth, but Sato couldn't continue the success of Fuji University with the Lions  Grade: D

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Ikusei 1: P Aoi Tono (Nikkei University, Fukuoka)

Tono lived up to the billing of an ikusei pick early on. However, a career-ending injury forced him to retire as he didn't fully recover from surgery.  Grade: Incomplete

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Ikusei 2: P Jiyu Okubo (Hokkai HS, Hokkaido)

Okubo was picked for his size and possible upside regarding a high school pitcher. He was unable to earn a promotion as the Lions let him g after three years. Grade: Incomplete

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Ikusei 3: C Daichi Nakaguma (Tokuyama University, Yamaguchi)

Nakaguma was a surprise ikusei pick as the Lions took three players in this round of the draft. In an injury riddled 2019, he only appeared in 12 ni-gun games where then-coach Takanori Hoshi needed to be registered as an ikusei for emergency catching depth. Nakaguma was brought back under another ikusei contract. Grade: Incomplete

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Overall:

If you're hitting on your first two picks, the rest can be ignored and Moriwaki staying at the ichi-gun would bee a success in finding three regulars.  Question is, does Matsumoto become an ace or just another rotational starter? Time will tell. Grade: B


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Monday, January 17, 2022

Report: Lions add Burch Smith, announce stadium name change


 The Saitama Seibu Lions announced on Tuesday that they added RHP Burch Smith. He will wear No. 54, last worn by Zach Neal. 

Smith, who will be 32 in April, last played for the Oakland Athletics from 2020-2021. Last season, he was a middle reliever and his role diminished to low leverage due to a poor performance. He threw 43.1 innings with a 5.40 ERA to go with 28 strikeouts. 

Smith had the following statement: 

I very honored to sign a contract with Saitama Seibu Lions and play against the best NPB players to our wonderful fans. I am looking forward to learning a lot from now on, including Japanese culture. I've been training this offseasonn so I want to bring the [pennant] flag to Saitama with my new teammates!

He previously played for the San Francisco Giants, Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals and San Diego Padres at the MLB level. Smith was originally drafted by thePadres in the 11th round of the 2011 MLB Draft where he made his Major League debut in 2013. 

His best year in MLB was with the Royals in 2018, where he started six games and appeared in 38 total with a 6.92 ERA in 78 innings of work. 

With the Lions, Smith could compete for a 7th or 8th inning reliever role. With Kaima Taira as the closer, the setup position remained uncertain all season long in 2021. General Manager "Nabe-Q" hinted that Smith could also be a starter. 

Smith is the fifth import signing by the Lions, which includes P Dietrich Enns, OF Brian O'Grady, P Bo Takahashi and IF Jantzen Witte. 

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MetLife Dome to become Belluna Dome

With the five-year naming rights contract with MetLife over, the Lions announced a new five-year naming rights contract with Belluna. The dome will have the title Belluna Dome from March 1, 2022 to February 28, 2027. Previous names to MetLife Dome include Seibu Dome, Invoice Dome, Goodwill Dome and Seibu Prince Dome.

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Wednesday, January 12, 2022

Four years later: Grading the 2017 Seibu Lions draft class

 


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Coming off their first A-class season in four years, the Saitama Seibu Lions entered the draft with different expectations this time around. There was a hyped up Kotaro Kiyomiya that would draw a big crowd, but the Lions took a different path. Here's how things have looked after four seasons for the 2017 draft class: 

First round: P Hiromasa Saito (Meiji University, Tokyo)

The Lions tried going for shakaijin pitcher Daiki Tajima, but lost the drawing to the Orix Buffaloes. Saito ended up being their fallback option. There was an emphasis for a left handed pitcher as Saito likely wasn't the best talent available after the first round opening. So far, he has disappointed through two years. After getting his feet wet in 2018 as a long relief swingman, his ichi-gun time diminished with a scheduled split start to take three innings and a few bullpen appearances.

He failed to make any impact at the ichi-gun level despite his success in Australia. Saito will spend the 2022 season under an ikusei contract. Grade: F

Hindsight: The Baystars took Katsuki Azuma, Swallows got Munetaka Murakami unopposed. 

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Second round: IF/OF Manaya Nishikawa (Hanasaki Tokuharu HS, Saitama)

Nishikawa was part of a Koshien championship team in 2017 and was even teammates with his senpai Aito Takeda at one point. So far, he has stayed in ni-gun as a regular infielder, though he can play OF too. He saw glimpses of ichi-gun time in 2020 and 2021 and is primed for opportunities next year. The next two seasons will be telling if this pick pans out or not as he turns 23 in 2022.  Grade: B-

Hindsight: Softbank Hawks took Rei Takahashi, Chiba took Yudai Fujioka

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Third round: P Sho Ito (Tokushima Indigo Socks, Tokushima)

Ito was taken as a 19-year old having only spent one year in Indy ball. After a promising first year, which included a spot start victory, he only saw mop up duties in 2019 while not faring as well for six games. His role has been limited at the ichi-gun and couldn't build off his 2018 season. After taking low to medium leverage innings, he underwent Tommy John surgery and will be rehabbing in 2022 under an ikusei contract Grade: D+

Hindsight: Orix took Shuhei Fukuda, Yomiuri took Takumi Oshiro, 

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Fourth round: P Kaima Taira (Yaeyama Shoko HS, Okinawa)

Taira spent the entire 2018 season in ni-gun, but earned his first call up in thee second half of 2019. He's the hardest throwing the pitcher the Lions have and while he was inconsistent, there was plenty of promise for him to take high leverage innings. He pitched in 26 ichi-gun games for 2019 and earned high leverage innings. In 2020, he was the setup man and in 2021, he became the closer due to an ineffective and injured Tatsushi Masuda. Taira set a Pacific League record for most consecutive innings without allowing an earned run to start the year and kept his closer role. If he keep pace, this is a great pick. Grade: A

Hindsight: Swallows took Yasutaka Shiomi


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Fifth Round: P Kaito Yoza (Gifu Keizai University, Gifu)

Yoza is a submarine pitcher thought to be the heir to Kazuhisa Makita, who was outgoing that offseason. His career has started out slow, recovering from an injury and surgery in 2018 where he spent 2019 under an ikusei contract. Yoza's long road to coming back finally came late in 2019 with two ni-gun appearances. The Lions liked what they saw and promoted him back to the 70-man roster after the season. Yoza is mostly a spot starter, but if he can keep a rotation job or stay at the ichi-gun, this is a decent pick for the fifth round. Grade: B

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Sixth Round: IF Ryusei Tsunashima (Itoigakawa Hakurei HS, Niigata)

Tsunashima was taken as a long term project for 3B and anywhere else on the infield. He made his ichi-gun debut in 2021 and appeared in seven games, but he was considered expendable as the team cut after the season. Grade: F

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Ikusei 1: OF Wataru Takagi (Shinsokan HS, Fukuoka)

Takagi was a two-way player coming off a shoulder injury, but the Lions saw him as a position player. He earned a quick promotion to the 70-man roster after a decent ni-gun season in 2018. In 83 ni-gun games, he had a slashline of .256/.302/.453 with 12 HRs. He made his ichi-gun debut in June of 2019 with one late at-bat for his only appearance. He saw some ichi-gun time expand in 2020 for a brief stretch, but couldn't repeat or find the same success in 2021. Might be a replacement player at best. Grade: C

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Ikusei 2: C Masato Saito (Hokkaido Kyoiku University, Hokkaido)

M. Saito has been a farm catcher for most of his time with the Lions. He earned a surprise promotion to the 70-man roster in the middle of the 2019 season when the depth became thin. M. Saito had a brief callup as an emergency third catcher, but never appeared in a game. He made his ichi-gun debut in 2021 as a replacement player. Like Takagi, he is just a bench/farm option. Grade: C

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Overall:

This class hasn't aged well except through Taira.  Grade: C

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Monday, January 10, 2022

Five years later: Grading the Seibu Lions 2016 Draft Class

 



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The Saitama Seibu Lions had several pitching options to take in this draft, but there was a huge difference of opinion in the first round. Through three seasons, a few players have already made some impact while others continue to develop. 

Here are the grades on the class after five seasons: 

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First round: P Tatsuya Imai (Sakushin Gakuin, Tochigi)

The Lions did not go for the hyped up Seigi Tanaka and all six B-class teams took a different player as a way of punishing those who went for him. There was no opposition for Imai's rights.

Imai's first season of professional baseball was cut short due to injury, where he suffered a shoulder problem in spring training camp. A suspension delayed his ichi-gun debut in 2018, but he made progress and continued to stay at the top level before being overwhelmed in the postseason. He put in a larger workload for 2019 while still developing, but remained inconsistent as a whole. In the last two years, it looks like he'll be a front end starter with a breakout season from being an ace. 
  

Grade: A-


Hindsight: Taisuke Yamaoka has paid early dividends for Orix. Haruhiro Hamaguchi is a starter for the Baystars. Dragons took Yuya Yanagi in a coin flip draw. Hanshin took Yusuke Ohyama. 

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Second round: P Shunta Nakatsuka (Hakuoh University, Tochigi) 

Nakatsuka failed to earn a roster spot during his five years in NPB. At one point, he almost finished a game being one out away, but three consecutive walks without a strike forced a hook. He saw two ichi-gun games in 2018 with no success and the same control problems continued to linger. 

He also received a workload in Australia with the Melbourne Aces and again struggled with control out of the bullpen. In Australia, he was known as "The Big Man" due to his size. His last ichi-gun action had six games in 2020, before the Lions cut him after the 2021 season.  Grade: F

Hindsight: Yuta Kuroki is a back end reliever for Orix. Yota Kyoda won the Central League rookie of the year award for the Chunichi Dragons. Tomohito Sakai was taken by the Marines and since switched to the Eagles as part of free agency compensation for Minabu Mima. Kazunari Ishii has been a regular fielder for the Fighters. Seishu Hatake has contributed for the Giants. 

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Third round: IF Sosuke Genda (Toyota Motors, Aichi)

The Lions took a shakaijin in the third round and he played every single inning at the ichi-gun level for 2017. Genda became the fourth player in NPB history to accomplish this feat and he won the 2017 Pacfic League rookie of the award. He avoided any sophomore slump in 2018 and became a Best IX SS for both the 2018 and 2019 seasons. COVID and injuries have limited Genda's playing time, but he's been the team captain since 2020 and an asset.   Grade: A

Hindsight: None for now

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Fourth round: OF Shohei Suzuki (Shizuoka HS, Shizuoka) 

The Lions took a HS outfielder as a future prospect. Suzuki made good progress in ni-gun and the Lions like what they're seeing him, hoping he can develop into a potential leadoff hitter. He earned his first ichi-gun action in 2019 as a reserve outfielder and even saw a handful of starts in right field.

His role expanded in 2020 and 2021, but couldn't keep his starting spot. He will be 24 this year and time could be running out if he doesn't make an impact. Grade: C-

Hindsight: Orix took Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The Marines took Seiya Dohi. Dragons took Shotaro Kasahara. 

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Fifth round: P Katsunori Hirai (Honda Suzuka, Mie)

Hirai was one of the oldest players taken in the class as he was a shakaijin playing in Mie prefecture. He cracked the ichi-gun level in May of 2017 and never had to look back, earning innings in medium leverage. For 2018. he was part of a up and down bullpen where he was prone to giving up home runs.

In 2019, he earned the setup man role and thrived under Kazuyoshi Ono. However, his arm was shot by the end of the year by overplaying him in every role from leading by 1 run to tie games or even trailing by a few runs. By appearing in 81 games, it was a new Pacific League record. This season shot his arm while his role diminished. For a fifth round draft pick, there is still good value at finding a reliever Grade B-

Hindsight: Kohei Morihara was taken by the Eagles. 

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Sixth round: P Ichiro Tamura (Rikkyo University, Tokyo)

Tamura has mostly taken mop up innings while staying alive at the ichi-gun level. He even earned a win in 2021.  Decent for a 6th round pick. Grade: B-

Hindsight: Rakuten took Yuhei Takanashi in the 9th round. Marines took Atsuki Taneichi. Baystars took Keita Sano in the 9th round. 

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Overall: 

Imai appears to be the best high school pitcher in this class, while a starting SS in Genda to help immediately and a reliever in Hirai are all positive picks. All three players had a role in the success from 2018-2019.   Grade: A- 


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Twitter results here:


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Other years:

2012

2013

2014

2015

2017

2018

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